I’m finishing the last episode of S5 now, and I’ll be fully caught up on this series. Between Afghanistan and Cambodia, China’s willingness to play ball with the US and its agenda is frustrating to learn.
It leaves me wanting to learn more about the Sino/Soviet split. The way this division manifested really aligned China with some dark forces, it would seem.
I also imagine the process of “normalization” with the US plays a huge role in the way this history unfolds as well.
It makes me wonder what they knew about The Khmer Rouge’s operations. I was left with the impression, based on how the history was laid out, that China was aware of just how aggressive and bloody the Khmer Rouge’s policies were.
Something about that stretch of time between 79 and 89 seems to have resulted in a bunch of weird geopolitical stuff.
Need to finish this episode, I guess.
This makes no sense. Siding with the world’s genocidal hegemon against the anti-colonial movements is much, much worse than a ‘Chinese Khrushchev’.
Yes, but the US didn’t represent the ideological strain they were trying to root out. Conciliation with the USSR would make one look like they agreed with the USSR’s path and wanted to do the same in China.
I’m not saying it made sense or was in any way excusable, but that paranoia was a factor in it.
If you aren’t trying to root out that ideological strain - of supporting colonial subjugation of the world by the European powers, - you should be the one rooted out.
By this logic, they found it more acceptable appearing to agree with genocides and colonialism of NATO.
These excuses do not work.